In a typical electric power steering (EPS) system of a vehicle, a hand wheel torque sensor is used to determine the driver requested assist torque. When the hand wheel torque sensor becomes faulty and does not function properly, the EPS system may not be able to provide the assist torque. In some cases, the vehicle is also put in a Limp Home mode, in which the vehicle operates in a limited fashion, when the hand wheel torque sensor becomes faulty. Accordingly, it is desirable to have an EPS system that better handles a situation of a faulty hand wheel torque sensor.